Young scientists show off knowledge

Monday

Feb 11, 2013 at 11:29 AMFeb 11, 2013 at 11:29 AM

By Andy Barrand

andy.barrand@hillsdale.net READING — When Reynolds Elementary School sixth-grader Madison Pupos was faced with the challenge of coming up with a science fair project, she knew she wanted to do something that would be fun. What did ended up doing was comparing the time difference between getting to the center of a Tootsie Roll Pop over a Blow Pop. “It was a lot of fun,” she said. “It took less time to get to the center of a Blow Pop because of its size.” To get to the center of a Blow Pop took 17 minutes, 37 seconds and to the center of a Tootsie Roll Pop 18 minutes, 24 seconds. After weeks of working on their projects Pupos and her sixth grade classmates at Reynolds were judged on their projects Thursday afternoon by physics students from Owens High School. The science fair was also open to fourth and fifth grade students at the school. Owens High School student Alexander Ely remembered taking part in the science fair as a fifth-grader. He took home first place for his project — testing the density of different liquids. “I thought it was interesting to see the number of projects here,” he said. Micah Watson, who judged projects alongside Ely, said he was impressed with the kids' projects. Science fair organizer and kindergarten teacher at Reynolds Shelley DeLoach said she thought all of the students did a good job. The students came up with a wide array of topics to hypothesize on — everything from your typical volcano eruptions and solar system projects to which side of a penny weighs more. With her project, Mercedes Miller set out to prove that one side of a penny weighed more than the other. “I thought the head side of the penny would be heavier,” she said. “It is heavier because of the head is elevated out of the penny.”Hayden Neely, a sixth-grader, experimented with coloring Sprite different colors with food coloring, trying to see if his subjects could taste any flavor in the color. His hypothesis was that the color of the liquid would make a difference in how it tasted to people. “Almost all of the people thought red was cherry,” he said. “I had a lot of fun with it." Winners were announced during an awards night Thursday. Winners were chosen by grade level and classroom. They included:Fourth grade, Noelle VanDuinen’s class: first, Jake Londeau and Brenden Semmler (Sounds that Travel Through Metal); second, Patricia Galloway (I’s Crystal Clear); and a tie for third, Paige Bailey and Claire VanDyke (Nails; It’s Whats for Breakfast!) and Kayla Wohlheter and Logan Brown (Flowers in Different Liquids). Fourth grade, Douglas Bartlett’s class: first, Dakota Doty (Suck it Up!); second, Veronica Zimmerman, Riley Cole, Pauline Cabrea and Arielle Matthews (Evaporation & Condensation); and third Kennedy Harris (Solutions). Fifth grade, Kim Wolodkin’s class: first, Brandon Davis (Flame & Oxygen); second, Lacey Weaver (I Want Candy); and third, Colin Brown (Cooking with Light). Fifth grade, Anne Smith’s class: first, Colin Ashton (Egg in a Bottle); and second, Jasmine Benchley (White vs. Wheat).Sixth grade, Char McClanahan’s class: first, Tyler Neukomn (How Different Fertilizers Affect Oat Sprouts); second, Tyler Whinnie (Evaporation of Water); and third, Mason DiFore (The Stroop Effect). Sixth grade, Danielle Elder’s class: first, Joey Weidmayer (How to Avoid Radar); second, Karly Messenger (The Chemistry of Concrete); and third, Alex Price (Tacky Tape).